MASTERS OF THE UNIVERSE (2026) Review

Review

How do you adapt one of the most successful cartoon series of the 1980s into a live-action film capable of capturing new audiences in 2026? Judging by Travis Knight’s Masters of the Universe the path to success begins by fully embracing the absurdity of its premise, leaning unapologetically into its campy origins and refusing to compromise on having fun for its entire 141 minute runtime.

Long-time fans know the story already. He-Man began life as a toy line in 1982, became a cult-classic Filmation series in 1983 and then a live-action movie star in 1987 with Dolph Lundgren in the role. In the four decades since, the franchise has endured in ways few could have predicted, finding new audiences through animation whilst continuing to sell millions of toys worldwide. So it was only natural that Mattel would eventually bring He-Man back to the big screen. The only question on fans’ minds was how to do that authentically in a world shaped by movies like The Dark Knight.

Initial concerns that there were too many cooks in the kitchen were put to bed. Masters of the Universe boasts story credits for Aaron Nee, Adam Nee, Alex Litvak and Michael Finch, whilst Aaron and Adam Nee share screenplay credit with both Chris Butler and David Callaham. The film is remarkably focussed for having such a sizeable creative team. Rather than attempting to ground its barbarian hero in the kind of gritty realism popularised by films like Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies, the writers look towards lighter, more adventurous fare such as Guardians of the Galaxy for inspiration. In broad terms, the notion of acceptance underpins every aspect of the film. Whether it applies to the characters or the franchise itself, Masters of the Universe is ultimately built on the idea of embracing who you are without apology.

Beginning 15 years ago on the techno-fantasy world of Eternia, we’re introduced to a young Prince Adam (Artie Wilkinson-Hunt) aka the future He-Man. Adam is outsider to his classmates. He’s smaller than them. He’s weaker than them. His mentor, Duncan/Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba), and his father, King Randor (James Purefoy) publicly mock his weakness in front of his classmates, decimating his self-confidence. His experiences colour every part of Adam’s portrayal throughout the movie, providing He-Man with a well-rounded arc centred on embracing his power and his heart. After a deadly attack by Skeletor (Jared Leto), Evil-Lyn (Alison Brie) and their forces devastates the city, Adam is sent to Earth by the Sorceress (Morena Baccarin) and our perspective shifts to the present day. The opening sets the scale and scope of the film really early on allowing the audience to relax in their seats, fully embracing all of its outrageous ideas.

Adult Adam (Nicholas Galitzine) struggles with a lack of identity. He remembers his Eternian heritage, refusing to hide it from everyone around him. But his stories of Ram-Man (Jon Xue Zhang) and Fisto (Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson) are met with raised eyebrows by his housemate Hussein (Christian Vunipola) and lead to a date making a swift exit early in the film. He works in HR at an equally identity-less firm where his boss, Suzie (Sasheer Zamata) is full of little more than buzz words and management speak. Galitzine imbues this lost version of Adam with a healthy amount of pout and melancholy that we’re able to connect with him and really empathise with his loss. It takes strong cues from Patty Jenkins’ presentation of Wonder Woman as a fish out of water in the human world, giving us the best of those elements with plenty of added humour.

Having missed 15 years of life on Eternia Adam is a fish out of water at home as well as on Earth. So after a confrontation with Beast Man (Gary Martin) and being reunited with Teela (Camila Mendes) he finds himself in no better position even when reunited with his homeland. But in doing so the film finds itself with a genius plot device to embrace even more aspects from the classic cartoons and toys. The writers naturally weave in all of those ridiculous names like “Fisto” by tying them to Young Adam’s memories of his homeland. Rather than trying to seriously name a character “Fisto” or “Ram-Man” they become childhood ideas that Adam used to remain connected to his heritage.

It’s in these moments, finding authentic ways to fold in elements which embrace the wider franchise, that Masters of the Universe is at its best. It doesn’t stop and heavy handedly point the finger at nostalgia. It quickly passes through it using an already fast-paced narrative to observe these elements as they pass by. Couple that with plenty of well choreographed action plus a scene stealing turn from Jared Leto and you have a film which is easily one of the most crowd pleasing blockbusters of the year so-far.

But there are moments where Masters of the Universe makes the wrong choice. They’re few and far between but they’re still there. After a rousing speech from Adam (complete with some laughable HR speak) the team is able to work together and break free from their cell in Skeletor’s Snake Mountain. The moment is excellently punctuated by a slow-mo hero walk complete with a dusty haze from the exploding cell. It’s the big moment when our heroes embrace their roles but then it’s cut through by a joke which feels just a step too far. It takes us out of an epic moment and instead pokes fun at it when the characters should be allowed to stand tall. These moments are few and far between and so they don’t threaten to ruin a genuinely fun time at the cinema.

Of the main cast there’s nobody who doesn’t full embrace the madness of the concept. Galitzine translates well to the action movie setting. His physicality is impressive on screen even when wearing what could have been an embarrassingly kitsch costume. That physicality translates equally well into each of his fight sequences. Rather than a perceptible sense of an actor counting beats in choreography his fight sequences flow naturally and genuinely present He-Man as the hero we know the character to be. Camila Mendes also takes well to the genre, representing Teela with all of the strength and heart of her animated counterpart. The film flirts with the idea of a romantic connection with Adam and neatly side-steps it as part of that playful tone. The same can be said of Idris Elba whose arc feels well rounded, allowing Duncan to fall and pick himself back up again with surprising substance.

With a reported budget around $170M Masters of the Universe looks great throughout. Eternia is where much of the money has been spent to bring the vast fantasy landscape to life. The visual effects all land really well here which is important when your villain has a completely CGI skeletal face. VFX heavy characters like Roboto (a surprisingly effective Kristen Wiig), Trap Jaw (Sam C. Wilson) and Mekaneck (James Wilkinson) also look great even during heavy battle scenes. But Battle Cat (Tom Wilton) is a little less well integrated into the film’s environments and stands out as one of the weaker points.

Meanwhile composer Daniel Pemberton is rapidly becoming the MVP of 2026 following on from an incredible score for Project Hail Mary. Here he’s teaming with Queen guitarist Brian May for a score which doesn’t feel a million miles away from 1980’s Flash Gordon. It’s bombastic, electronic-rock that powers its way through the film almost as much as He-Man himself. The completely unbridled creativity reminded me on 90’s Danny Elfman with its ability to embrace all the fun and absurdity of the film whilst translating it into a pulse-pounding score. It’s certainly one which will be a great listen in isolation once the score album is released.

Thankfully, unlike plenty of other tentpole blockbusters, Masters of the Universe doesn’t concern itself with setting up multiple sequels. At least not before the credits begin to roll. The narrative feels neatly bookended in case a sequel should never materialise. But make sure to sit through the full credits for scenes that will absolutely tantalise long-time fans for future stories whilst also tipping its hat to a fun aspect from the Filmation series.

Verdict

The film succeeds because it recognises that the answer was never to modernise He-Man beyond all recognition. Instead, Knight embraces every ridiculous, colourful and sincere aspect of Masters of the Universe and discovers that authenticity is far more appealing than irony.

⭐⭐⭐⭐